MyNavStyle

Wednesday, 10 December 2014

We live our life in transactions. Tasks are lined-up in a queue. One follows the other, and we execute it like a robot. Each day is exactly the one before. While these tasks are important to achieve basic life skills, it is not an end.

Societal pressures and expectations define the trajectory of our transactions in life. Our life is spent in trying to achieve different levels set by society to prove that we are successful. Humans are gifted by God to dream! Live your dreams by working on them. And finally bring eternal happiness to self & society.

With New Year as an excuse, let’s relook and focus our energy in areas, which are our real lifeline.

Each one of us has some unique quality, which distinguishes us from the rest. In the rat race, we often forget to identify and hone this natural talent. Nurture this into your hobby or make this your livelihood. Your true bliss will come in spending time and energy towards this God’s gift.

It is critical that you identify & define your priorities, balancing self, family, work and society. Once it is defined, allocate time based on the importance you have given to each of them.

If family and health are high on your priority, then allocate and spend time to achieve those objectives. If you want to work for betterment of society, then start NOW. Do not wait towards the fag end of your life. Start contributing in a small way. It is important that you articulate these objectives to your family members and friends.

It is very easy to blame the current situation on your inability to achieve your stated objectives. We are all very good in that. But this is your life. If you want to live this on your terms, you have to learn to swim upstream. Take unconventional decisions, and follow your heart.

Life is incredibly short, so forgive quickly, kiss slowly, love truly, laugh uncontrollably and never regret anything that made you smile.

Sunday, 9 November 2014

As Indian
middle class is burgeoning and we have disposable income, food industry has
really blossomed. Every occasion is celebrated with food & more food. India
already has the tradition of making exotic foods in festival times.

These festival
times have become pervasive now. Every opportunity of good news – be it a
birthday, promotion, salary hike, opportunity to travel abroad, clinching a
sales deal, achieving a target, long weekend, quarterly bash in corporates or
even break-up parties by young folks are occasions to eat with friends &
families.

And food has to
be loaded with sugar! Cakes have become everyday affair.

Unknowingly, we
have inflicted on us this syndrome of binge eating. This starts from early
childhood and continue to grow in adolescence & adulthood.

While we have
more money to spend on food, we still are conservative in throwing away food.
Hence, extra food that is ordered ends up in our stomach forcefully!

Binge eating is
a mental disorder, with episodes of compulsive eating. It has become a common
phenomenon in 85% of urban Indians, as per the recent report by WHO.

Fad of keeping
oneself fit can only work, if people first attempt to correct this binge-eating
phenomenon. Otherwise, all your fitness club memberships, New Year resolutions,
investments in fitness bands like GetActive will remain ineffective.

Monday, 13 October 2014

Losing
weight is the top most priority people have, when topic of health, wellbeing or
fitness is discussed. This is true, because more than 90% people in our world,
including our country are over-weight.

Hence,
weight-loss industry is thriving. You have special weight-loss drinks,
massaging devices, weight-loss spas, weight-loss centers, weight-loss diet
program and what not. We all know that these are transient measures, not good
for health. However, need for looking good or losing weight over powers these
side effects.

Walking
is a time-tested measure for losing weight. However, it takes time because most
of us are not aware of certain ground rules, which expedite weight-loss scientifically
without reaching a plateau. Let me share some recipes, which works for
everyone:

Everyday
change the pace & pattern of walking – surprise your body. For example, one
day go for a long 45 min walk, second day combine brisk walk & jog, third
day just do up-hill walk/jog, fourth day jog-rest-jog till you are tired and so
on.

Combine
this routine with 2-2.5 liters of water intake everyday (increase this
gradually, if you are not used to taking this quantum). Avoid water 30 minutes
before any meal, till 45 minutes post meal.

Make
sure you do not finish your each meal in less than 30-40 minutes, everyday. Do
not watch TV or read a book while eating. You should eat your meal looking at
food, savoring its flavor and texture, chewing it slowly. I am not restricting
you in quantity, but just speed.

Unless
you have congenital issues of weight gain, everyone should benefit from the
above tips.

Friday, 5 September 2014

Running
is a new corporate fad. Everyone is keen to qualify as a marathoner. Even a
small run of few kilometers is qualified as a marathon event. On weekends, you
can find people running in small groups, all geared-up in branded accessories.

Mobile
apps, new age wearable technology gadgets or activity trackers are becoming
commonplace. These products help broadcast your achievements to social
networking sites instantly, which is a bigger kick!

I
firmly believe in adequate physical activity everyday, hence a proponent of
long distance running. Here, I am attempting to suggest tips on running, which
can prevent injuries and help you enjoy running on a daily basis with fun and
positive energy.

Do’s
for running:

Use
the front (broader) part of your foot, after the toes for landing on ground.

Try
to be as light footed as possible, and use the complete body movement (core
muscles) to lift your weight.

Breathe
from abdomen and keep breathe-out time double of your breathe-in time.

Never
land with a force, this shows you are not using complete body for running.

Do
not bend your spine, keep it in straight line, with a forward angle.

Adequate physical activity is not achieved by just
running for a specific period in a day. Use running to enhance your overall
physical activity of walking in a day. Distribution of physical activity
throughout a day improves your metabolism and strengthens your core muscles.

GetActive or similar Wearable
Tech products like Fitbit can help you assess your distribution of physical activity
levels, apart from quantifying the information on steps, calories burnt,
distance walked and total active time spent in a day.